A review by mattiedancer
A Memory of Light by Robert Jordan

adventurous dark hopeful medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.75

A Memory of Light by Robert Jordan and Brandon Sanderson

**SPOILERS**
A Small Note: I can’t imagine the difficulty that Brandon Sanderson had wrapping up a 14-book-plus-a-prequel series in way that was satisfying and respectful to Jordan’s intentions and memory. I think he did a good job – a satisfying job. At times, it edged towards a wonderful job. I found this book very hard to judge overall for the scope of it. Threads that I hoped were wrapped up, simply weren’t, while others were tied up so tightly it felt awkward. But I appreciate how hard this task was to complete and how well he managed in spite of its monstrous scope. 

Writing: 4⭐️/5 
Overall, the writing is solid bordering on excellent. I appreciated the artistry of The Last Battle chapter, given that it reflected the exhaustion our characters felt. The short glimpses around the battlefield after The Last Battle also worked well to cement the flurry of battle and its effects. The authors maintained tight control of their prose and managed to describe high-level action scenes with clarity and finesse. My critique mainly surrounded the bloat in certain sections – particularly in The Last Battle where a few POVs dragged or meandered costing the scene focus and clarity – and the clunkiness of others – particularly Androl’s disguise scheme and Perrin’s search for Faile.

Characters: 4⭐️/5
Let’s talk positives first: we get a lot of characters, and we settle into most of their POVs very well. I loved the call back to Nynaeve’s wisdom-healing ways, the bold and selfless sacrifices Lan made, and Egwene’s guidance to Rand in his most crucial moments. Many of our core characters came across well in this book, and I loved spending the final book with many characters that I have come to love, and others I have grown to tolerate (looking at you, Perrin). My main critique here comes in with the supporting characters who seemed to have lost a step or two. I was relatively annoyed at Loial and his sudden insistence that he disregard emotional sensitivity for his novel. I also didn’t enjoy Thom’s POV at the end, as he watched people die and wrote his ballad. And while I loved certain characters, it felt like we had to rehash every bit of growth they had had, even stuff that had been long dealt with. My other gripe is our lack of insight into Moiraine; despite her heavy involvement in a pivotal moment, we get more insight into Thom than her.

Plot: 3.75⭐️/5 
And here’s where it gets tricky. It’s hard not to consider the plots that didn’t get wrapped up over the course of the series. Trying to focus specifically on plots that did happen in this book, I think Sanderson (and Jordan) did a good job of telling an epic story that offers an ending. And I did, for the most part, like the ending. But, I didn’t love all the choices on how we got there. The start of the book, like much of the books in this series, was significantly weaker than the ending. While I liked the look into the Black Tower, I didn’t love the plotline of how the Tower was reclaimed. Several of the ickier details definitely stuck with me as well, as these didn’t feel necessary. Perrin’s extended plotline to deal with Slayer felt drug out, and I would have loved to see it cleaned up. Lanfear’s sudden obsession with Perrin also felt… odd, as did her appearance in the caves of Shayol Ghul. Most disappointing to me is the lack of conclusion to the Seanchan and the use of the Seanchan as a plot point in Moghedien’s story, almost as a bit of a karmic moment, which felt unnecessary and disgusting. I also would have loved to get a bit more plot given to Faile, as much as I didn’t love her as a character. Overall, the plot was definitely serviceable, even quite enjoyable, but I would have loved more.

Who Should Read This Book? 
Those reading the Wheel of Time

Content Warnings? 
Toxic relationships, blood, gore, abuse, domestic abuse, war, sexual assault, rape, toxic friendships, gaslighting, misogyny, sexism, death, murder, injury, injury detail, sexual harassment, emotional abuse, slavery, pregnancy, 

Post-Reading Rating:  3.75⭐️/5
This is not the review. But it is a review.

Final Rating: 3.75⭐️/5 (3.875)
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